A way forward for Northwest forests

The Oregonian recently reported that the Obama administration has proposed a
short-term plan for the federal Bureau of Land Management's so-called O&C
forests that allows the logging of 19,000 acres. Development of a long-term plan
is expected next year.

In response to inquiries from the Oregon congressional delegation, we
recently assessed strategies for the Northwest's federal forests in terms of how
both old-growth forest protection and timber harvest could be provided on a
sustainable basis. Focusing on those goals, we designed a restoration strategy
that could provide the foundation for the BLM's long-term plan. Key elements of
the plan include:

--Focusing on comprehensive restoration of forest and stream ecosystems
rather than trying to address issues such as timber, carbon, owls or fire in
isolation. A holistic approach is required to develop a sustainable and socially
acceptable strategy.

-- Retaining core elements of the Northwest Forest Plan, including its late
successional reserves and aquatic conservation strategy. We should consider the
federal forest estate as a whole rather than considering O&C lands in
isolation.

--Distinguishing between "moist" and "dry" forests. Our westside Douglas-fir
forests characterize the moist forests, which were historically subject to
stand-replacement disturbances (such as fire or storms) at intervals of one to
several centuries. Eastern Cascade forests of ponderosa pine and mixed conifers
typify the dry forests, which were characteristically subject to frequent,
less-intense wildfires and have been drastically modified during the past 150
years by such activities as fire suppression.

--Conserving old forests and trees. In moist forests, reserve and protect the
remaining old stands. In dry forests, actively manage the ecosystems to restore
resilience and function while retaining and nurturing the old trees.

--In moist forests, in addition to protecting old stands, accelerate the
restoration of diversity in tree plantations by ecologically focused thinnings
and by implementing regeneration harvests in non-old-growth forests outside of
reserves using the principles of ecological forestry. Although regeneration
harvests would not be clear-cuts, they may be controversial. But they can
achieve important ecological and social goals --creating structurally complex,
early successional habitats and long-term timber supplies.

--In dry forests, restoration can be accomplished by reducing tree densities,
favoring fire- and drought-tolerant tree species, such as ponderosa pine,
facilitating recovery of hardwood trees and shrubs, and retaining and nurturing
old trees --all activities that will reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire
and insect epidemics. Patches of denser forest would be retained as part of the
restored landscape to provide suitable habitat for northern spotted owls and
other species.

Comprehensively implementing this program over the next 20 years would
restore the Northwest's federal forest estate and contribute immensely to
preparing these forests to cope with climate change --all while simultaneously
providing for annual harvests of more than 1 billion board feet per year from
those lands and more than 200 million board feet per year from O&C lands.

Norm Johnson is a professor in the College of Forestry
at Oregon State University. Jerry Franklin is a professor
in the College of the Environment at the University of Washington. For more
detail on this strategy, go online to
www.cof.orst.edu/cof/fs/PDFs/JohnsonRestoration_Aug15_2009.pdf